Montana OKs shooting bison leaving tolerance sites

Hunters will be allowed to shoot bison that migrate out of “tolerance” areas under a proposal approved Thursday by the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission. While the focus on the tolerance areas is north of Yellowstone National Park, discussion at Thursday’s FWP Commission meeting also covered whether those tolerance zones include areas outside the Fort Peck and Fort Belknap Indian reservations. Negotiations currently are under way between state and tribal officials regarding giving the tribes some captured bison that migrated north into Montana from Yellowstone. The commission also approved the regular 2012-2013 bison hunting season and quota, which is the same as previous years, and doesn’t have anything to do with hunting bison outside of the tolerance zone, according to FWP officials. Under the newest update to the Interagency Bison Management Plan, bison are allowed to roam on about 75,000 acres in Montana north of Yellowstone to Yankee Jim Canyon. Cattle guards, fences and topography are expected to make it difficult for bison to move beyond that area, but those that do may be hunted under the newest provision. Hunting bison outside the tolerance area will be used in conjunction with other bison management efforts, like hazing with helicopters or horses...more